Page 73 of Anything For This Love

“Tell me,” I demand.

He curses, his frustration gritting out through his teeth. “She said you weren’t right for me and claimed she could acclimate to my lifestyle better.”

Pain lances through me. Her statement is probably true and that’s what hurts the most. I always knew –

“I told her I’d acclimate to yours.”

His declaration settles my racing mind and I let his words sink in, my heart opening to them. It no longer matters that I don’t fit in with his society. He wants to be a part of mine. I’ve spent far too long worrying about what everyone else in his life thinks about me that I lost sight of what’s important: how I think about myself.

I take a calming breath and rein in my anger, trying to approach the situation like a rational human being, not a jealous girlfriend. “I appreciate you telling me. I don’t want there to be secrets between us.”

“I don’t either.”

“I hate that you’re so far away.”

“Me too, but I’ll be back soon,” he promises.

“Not soon enough.”

“I wholeheartedly agree.”

Jacob’snext visit coincides with my brother coming home. Ethan and his band finally finished their album. It’s due to come out soon, but he has a break before the launch so he decided to spend some time with us. He’ll go on tour in a couple months and will be gone for nearly six. We’ll hardly see him while he’s on the road.

My grandmother, mother, and I leave Ethan and Jacob to the task ofwrangling Chloe while we prepare dinner. She’s been a handful lately, so they have their work cut out for them.

“What the hell happened to my sweet little niece?” Ethan mutters as we settle in for dinner. He made the mistake of trying to put her in her highchair. She stiffened her body and let out an angry howl that would rival a bobcat’s. He finally gave up and she promptly crawled into his seat, her face scrunching up in an ornery grin.

“Terrible twos,” we all answer in unison, breaking into laughter at the stunned look on his face.

Ethan sinks down in the chair next to our mother and she smiles affectionately at him. It’s his first visit home since she came back from rehab, and although their interactions start out awkward, they quickly fall into a natural flow of conversation. Their postures relax and they both seem to open up a bit more. Her presence at our table is still unfamiliar to him, but I’ve grown used to her over time, even if conversation doesn’t always come easily for us.

After dinner, Jacob and Ethan offer to do the cleaning since we cooked. Well, more like Jacob offers and recruits Ethan before he can make his escape.

“Why don’t you ladies take Chloe outside to play? It’s really nice out,” Jacob suggests before pulling me into his arms and placing a quick kiss to my forehead. Pulling back, I look into his eyes as his hands frame my face. His lips meet mine in a chaste kiss and I fight the urge to deepen it.

“Good idea,” I agree and retrieve Chloe’s shoes.

After wrestling her into them, we all go outside, leaving my brother and boyfriend to clean up the huge mess from dinner. They join us right as the sun begins to set and we take advantage of the last of the dying rays to get in a few more trips down the slide before teaching Chloe how to capture lightning bugs. Jacob laughs uproariously as we run around the yard like lunatics with mason jars, slamming the lids riddled with tiny air holes down every time we catch a bug. Chloe gazes at them with wide eyes, enraptured as their lights flicker inside the glass. We turn them all loose before heading inside.

Ethan leaves shortly after with a sack of plastic containers full of leftovers. He didn’t mention Tiff while he was here, and I can’t help wondering what his silence means. She’s working so she can’t be here, but I was under the impression they were working things out. I don’t want to prod too much, though. If something is going on, Tiff will eventually confide in me. She’s promised to be open about her relationship with Ethan from now on.

Warm, muscled arms slip around my waist a second before his hard chest meets my back. “Ready to go?” Jacob whispers in my ear, the low rumble of his voice settling in my core.

“Yes.” My head falls to his shoulder. I need to feel him, to be wrapped tight in his arms as he reminds me what it means to be loved by him.

Chloe’s asleep before we make it to our destination. Jacob carries her in, gently cradling her in his big, strong arms. Once she’s tucked away in her kid-size bed, he finds me in the kitchen, pouring us each a glass of wine.

“I see you found my provisions,” Jacob observes, padding toward me in bare feet, wearing nothing but a pair of jeans slung low on his hips.

My gaze meets his bare chest and remains there a moment before rising to meet his eyes. They burn with unspoken desire as he takes one glass from my hands and sips from it. I take a large gulp from mine, attempting to cool my rapidly heating skin. All it does is add to the warmth spreading through my veins at his molten stare.

“I missed you,” he proclaims, cupping my cheek. I turn into him, closing my eyes as I bask in his touch.

“I missed you more.”

“Not possible.” I open my eyes and find him watching me from beneath his hooded gaze. “I think about you every moment we spend apart. Every time I see the lush, spring grass on the side of the road, I imagine the green of your eyes. When I close my eyes at night, it’s your face I see in my dreams. And every time I touch myself, I imagine it’s your soft hand wrapping around my cock.”

He grabs my hand and presses it to the front of his pants. The proof of his arousal digs into my palm and I instinctively curl my fingers around it. He hisses, his chest inflating with the sharp inhale. Leaning down, he runs his nose up the side of my jaw, his mouth settling against my ear.

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